While many teams can have all the skill and talent on paper, they may not show it on the court. That is why this year, the Yutan boys basketball team is heavily focused on team culture to earn themselves a trip to Lincoln at the end of their season.
“I think the biggest thing that needed to change from last year to this year was our culture—the team camaraderie we had around being a tight-knit group of guys, being close, everyone being friends, getting together outside of the gym and hanging out,” senior AJ Arensberg said. “Being close with your teammates makes a big difference because you’ll go and fight for your brother.”
They plan on improving their team bonds in different ways on and off the court.
“Most of the basketball players played football during the fall, so we already have good team culture from that. We also used to hang out outside of school before [the] season, and we still do during [the] season. Because we are with each other so much, we are able to trust each other on the court,” junior Carson Jurey said.
While team culture will help the players work together, they also know there’s plenty of work to do in the gym.
“We’ve got to come to practice every day just to get a little bit better with the right focus and intensity and toughness every day,” head boys basketball coach Jesse Gardner said.
The strong culture and hard work will be especially important as the team faces some challenges to start the season.
“We’ve got four guys out with injuries. One’s out for the season, so the team is really going to have to adjust from that, so that’s going to kind of work itself out in the first couple weeks here,” Gardner said.
One of these players is Arensberg, who is out for possibly a few games from a superficial tear in his MCL. He is currently doing light practices with the team and gradually doing more and more at practice to prepare for when he comes back.
“I’ve been doing PT three times a week for an hour while doing extra stretches on my own to hopefully get back quicker. I can’t sprint or scrimmage at practice, but I can do light things like jogging and shooting,” Arensberg said.
Another player currently out is sophomore Peyton Reed, who is still trying to be a leader despite not being on the court.
“I have been showing up to every practice and clapping and encouraging my teammates when they are playing. I also help the freshman out when they need help on a drill we are doing,” Reed said.
While the team may be down a few key players, they are focused on the positive side of getting more experience from others on the court.
“Overcoming these challenges will make the team stronger because it will get us used to adversity and a lot more players will get playing time,” sophomore Ryan Maguire said.
The team is hoping their combination of culture, hard work and determination perseverance will help them overcome the challenges of the early season and reach the goals they have set for themselves, which include focusing on detail, holding teammates accountable and going far in the postseason.
“I think there’s a lot of little goals that we could accomplish one at a time, so then just build off them after we make each one, and then hopefully it ends with the state championship,” junior Maddox Wentworth said.
Staying focused on these goals will help the team stay strong through any future challenges they may face.
“Towards the last month or so when you played a month and a half of basketball or whatever, it starts to get tiring, and your body’s tired and sore and you have to fight through it and still know what your final goal and destination is,” Jurey said.
While the end of the season is yet to be determined, for now the team is excited to start playing.
“I’m most excited for just being around this group. The chemistry seems pretty good so far—they like being at practice and they like being in the gym, so I’m just excited for the journey of the season with them,” Gardner said.